8/15/2012

Obama cutting $716 billion from Medicare

What the CBO is reporting here is that without Obamacare Medicare would be spending an estimated $716 billion more over the next ten years. The savings come from reducing how much doctors and hospitals get paid.

Spending for Medicare would increase by an estimated $716 billion over
that 2013–2022 period. Federal spending for Medicaid and CHIP would
increase by about $25 billion from repealing the noncoverage provisions of
the ACA, and direct spending for other programs would decrease by about
$30 billion, CBO estimates. . . .

Of course, Obama just denies that this is the equivalent of reducing benefits.

“We gave seniors deeper discounts on prescription drugs, and made sure preventive care like mammograms are free without a co-pay,” Obama said in his weekly White House address. “We’ve extended the life of Medicare by almost a decade and I’ve proposed reforms that will save Medicare money by getting rid of wasteful spending in the healthcare system and reining in insurance companies – reforms that won’t touch your guaranteed Medicare benefits. Not by a single dime.”

Mitt Romney’s campaign has been on the offensive over Medicare since adding Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) to the GOP ticket, believing that the budget Ryan authored, which would allow Medicare beneficiaries to choose between traditional Medicare and federal subsidies with which to buy private insurance, could be a liability to their campaign. . . .